Pastor Paul Krause
At the very core of my ministry is a heart for faith to make sense and make a difference. As I was studying to become a pastor, one day my son came home from church and said, “I don’t know why I’m going to church. None of it makes any sense.” I determined that day that I would endeavor in each aspect of worship for it to make sense, for the sake of my son and your family. I want the messages I preach to make sense to you and to have application in your life. I want the worship experience to change your life. You should never leave the same way you came in. You should be lifted up, challenged, comforted, and energized, but never the same.
Because I was a teacher and in the education field for 25 years, I am considered a “second career” pastor. My teacher’s heart is clearly reflected in the messages I preach. They will always attempt to help you learn about your faith and how it is relevant to your life. I learn every time I prepare a message and I hope you will learn as you hear them.
My father was a pastor. My grandfather was a pastor and a missionary in Brazil. I had a great-great-…grandfather who was a missionary on the wagon trains going west. In the words of Luke Skywalker, “The force runs strong in my family.” Yet God was patient with me and used my years in education to prepare me for his work in ministry today. The most amazing moment of preparation he provided, was to show me what a stinking sinner I am, and that he loves me so much he gave his Son to die for me. I hope I can somehow share God’s grace with you in a way that transforms your heart, as it did mine.
My wife, Ruth, and I were both teachers when we met, and we have spent most of our summers together traveling with our family across North America. We were married in 1988 and we have three adult children. We are incredibly blessed to have given our children experiences in 49 US states and most of the Canadian provinces. Our hope is that now that our children have careers of their own, someday they will give us an experience in Hawaii. We’ll have to see how well that pans out.
I grew up in Waterloo, Iowa, and went to college at Concordia College in St. Paul, Minnesota. Upon graduation, I took a job at Lutheran High School East in Harper Woods, Michigan, where I met Ruth who grew up in Port Huron, Michigan. I have a MA in Education from Eastern Michigan University and a MA in Counseling from Central Michigan University. I entered the DELTO program through Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri while finishing my teaching career in Port Huron, and was ordained in 2010. We started a church in Marysville, Michigan, served in Bay City, Michigan for two years, and we are now blessed to serve in the area we had intended to retire in.
I am confident God has brought me to this moment, and I am confident he has brought you to this moment also. I look forward to meeting you soon and getting to know a little about you as well.